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Change my CPU or GPU ?`

D

dopefishzzz

Limp Gawd
Joined
May 20, 2005
Messages
269
Hi !

I'm planning to upgrade my system.

I actually have :

X2 3800 @ 2.4 GHz
7950GX2

I game at 1920 x 1080.

Some games like R6:Vegas shows some slowdowns.

Which would be the best upgrade for me ?

8800GTX or C2D 6700 ?
 
depending on budget..

any new vid card you put in will be limited by that cpu

start there
 
At 1920x1200 a 8800GTX will be a better choice. Sure your CPU is not the best but at 2.4GHz, you don't need a C2D yet. A single card will be smoother than SLi.
 
the term "limited by your CPU" pisses me off. Every system ever made by anyone ever is limited by your cpu. if your gonna use the term "limited by your CPU", define exactly what you mean, like this:

Yes, your CPU is one of the limiting factors. If we say that the QX 6800 is a cpu that gives 100% the FPS possible on that card, then the X2 3800, at that res, is about 90-95%.

An 8800GTX mops the floor with the 7950GX2, and, well, every other card out there. You'll see much more signicant then 5%-10% performance increase by going the 8800GTX path. Furthermore a 7950GX2 will sell for a couple of bones, where as the X2 3800 would not (of course I'm asuming your windsor, if your manchester then its just about worth the shipping costs of anything out of your own state).
 
IMO, the C2D 6700 is about useless. Unless your doing nothing but encoding or running benchmarks all day, the 6400 is plenty, and the 6600 is a reasonable upgrade given the extra cache. Anything above those two is a waste of money, IMO. I recently built a system for my friend (E6400, 8800GTS 640) and that thing screams on any game out right now. It absolutely dominated Oblivion and NFS:Carbon, and it's really making me want to upgrade :D

In other words, get the GTX and then get a new CPU later. You'll see a MUCH bigger improvement going to the GTX than you will going to the 6700, in pretty much all games (except maybe Sup Com, which is very CPU intensive, but even then you definitely won't LOSE anything).
 
I'm a little perplexed. :confused:
You currently have an X2 3800, which is AMD and are thinking of of going with a C2D, which is intel. Am I missing something? I don't believe you can upgrade to a C2D from an X2 unless you're changing you underlying platform. You didn't mention a motherboard, so we can't assume you are. :(
At any rate, you will see a much better performance improvement from the video card upgrade, rather than the CPU upgrade. :D
 
CSpinner said:
I'm a little perplexed. :confused:
You currently have an X2 3800, which is AMD and are thinking of of going with a C2D, which is intel. Am I missing something? I don't believe you can upgrade to a C2D from an X2 unless you're changing you underlying platform. You didn't mention a motherboard, so we can't assume you are. :(
At any rate, you will see a much better performance improvement from the video card upgrade, rather than the CPU upgrade. :D
Click to expand...

Im pretty sure he knows this. Just look at the price difference hes between an 8800GTX ~$500 And an e6700 ~$320 I*m sure hes not an idiot and planned a mobo in with that 6700... Im pretty sure if he thought he could slap a C2D in his mobo he wouldn't be here either way... He would be asking geek squad.

To the OP: Could meet in between and try and squeeze a cheaper core 2 and an 8800GTS out of your budget though.
 
If the main and almost sole purpose of this system is gaming, then 8800GTX.
If you do encoding more than gaming then I would recommend the C2D.

The poster above me has the right idea though. An E6420 OC'd and an 8800GTS 640MB would be a good choice if you want the best of both worlds.
 
A CPU upgrade will have less of an effect when gaming at high resolutions like 1920x1200, where there is more stress on the graphics card. Also SLI isn't very good when it comes to minimum fps - this is far more important than average fps.

My vote is for the 8800GTX
 
your 7950gx2 will scale with cpu performance. first thing to do is replace the cpu, then go 8800
 
sabregen said:
your 7950gx2 will scale with cpu performance. first thing to do is replace the cpu, then go 8800
Click to expand...

I strongly disagree hes running at 19x12 theres not much he could do to get more out of that 7950 besides replacing it.
 
MrWizard6600 said:
the term "limited by your CPU" pisses me off. Every system ever made by anyone ever is limited by your cpu. if your gonna use the term "limited by your CPU", define exactly what you mean, like this:

Yes, your CPU is one of the limiting factors. If we say that the QX 6800 is a cpu that gives 100% the FPS possible on that card, then the X2 3800, at that res, is about 90-95%.

An 8800GTX mops the floor with the 7950GX2, and, well, every other card out there. You'll see much more signicant then 5%-10% performance increase by going the 8800GTX path. Furthermore a 7950GX2 will sell for a couple of bones, where as the X2 3800 would not (of course I'm asuming your windsor, if your manchester then its just about worth the shipping costs of anything out of your own state).
Click to expand...

QFT!

Sure a C2D will be faster than the OP's 3800+ X2 @ 2.4GHz but the difference in gaming isn't as much as people in this thread would like you to believe. My suggestion would be to get a 8800GTS 320/640 (GTX is bleeding edge tech. but you'll pay a huge premium for it) and try to see if you can up the clock speed on the X2.
 
pfunkman said:
I strongly disagree hes running at 19x12 theres not much he could do to get more out of that 7950 besides replacing it.
Click to expand...

QFT, but you forget that at that resolution (and I'm running 1920x1080), you MUST have the CPU speed to back up any GPU, to push the GPU to it's limits, so that you can enable the options to make it look pretty. I don't think anyone in the market for an 8800gts will settle for much less than max detail on most DX9 games. I know I won't.
 
Replace the CPU. You can get a C2D to 3.0 ghz without sweat, and 3.5 ghz with a little bit of elbow grease. It'll keep the 7950GX2 plenty fed. And let's be reasonable, it's a pretty powerful card for DX9. Use that for a while, and when you decide that you want more speed, replace the card with the latest and greatest of DX10. The video card companies will refresh in the upcoming months, and you'll want whatever those cards turn out to be over today's 8800's for the likes of Crysis and beyond.
 
Since the 7950GX2 is "SLI on a single card", I would go with the 8800GTX. Why? Not everything can take advantage of SLI and you'll get a healthy boost of FPS at the resolution that you're gaming at with just a single 8800GTX (since you're probably close to the fill-rate limit of that card at that resolution, even with that processor). Also, you'll bypass any SLI driver problems (especially if you experiment with Vista any).

Those are just my thoughts though...
 
MrWizard6600 said:
PLEASE when reading ALG7s review the differance in ammount of AF, drivers, and chipsets.
Click to expand...

Wonder why they did that? Using double the AF for the athlon tests seems odd.

EDIT: Also the athlon tests where run at Ultra quality while the core 2 tests where run at High
 
pfunkman said:
Wonder why they did that? Using double the AF for the athlon tests seems odd.

EDIT: Also the athlon tests where run at Ultra quality while the core 2 tests where run at High
Click to expand...

At least is shows the FPS's are WELL above 30fps even on max settings. How much ram is the OP running? It could be that :)
 
noobtech said:
At least is shows the FPS's are WELL above 30fps even on max settings. How much ram is the OP running? It could be that :)
Click to expand...

I dont get your point? he is not having issues with FPS he is asking for opinions on what he should upgrade. Why would the amount of ram even be a question?
 
dopefishzzz said:
Hi !

I'm planning to upgrade my system.

I actually have :

X2 3800 @ 2.4 GHz
7950GX2

I game at 1920 x 1080.

Some games like R6:Vegas shows some slowdowns.

Which would be the best upgrade for me ?

8800GTX or C2D 6700 ?
Click to expand...

i think your best upgrade would be the 8800gxt. at your res your not going to see too much cpu limitation. id get the gtx and then when there are some quad cores on the market for a reasonable price i id up grade the cpu. thats my plan.
 
dopefishzzz said:
Hi !

I'm planning to upgrade my system.

I actually have :

X2 3800 @ 2.4 GHz
7950GX2

I game at 1920 x 1080.

Some games like R6:Vegas shows some slowdowns.

Which would be the best upgrade for me ?

8800GTX or C2D 6700 ?
Click to expand...

Wrong question.
I personally think the 6700 is dumb.

I think it is E6600 or bust, if you want that 4MB cache.
But now, E6320 and E6420 has a 4MB cache.

I would say buy an E6420, overclock it just a little bit, and you will be amazed.
And, then you will have almost enough left over to buy a 8800GTS.
:)
 
$100 - Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E4300 1.8GHz 800MHz 2MB LGA775 CPU, OEM
$22 - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Fan For Intel CPU
$98 - GIGABYTE GA-965P-S3 LGA775/ P965/ DDR2 800/ A&GbE/ RoHS/ ATX Motherboard
$350 - PNY VCG88GTSXPB GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail (LESS $20 MIR)
---------------------------------------------------------------
$570 - $20MIR = $550 + shipping and taxes
---------------------------------------------------------------

he can drop to the 320mb version and buy a better cpu/mobo/hsf, but since he is overclocking the e4300 (hopefully beyond 3GHz), he should be running the 8800 at its full potential
 
Dont forget memory to add to that if he is currently running a DDR platform.....

As well as the possibility of upgrading you PSU (I don't know what you are running now)

Personally, I would just upgrade your video card. That's what I am doing; adding another 2GB memory and upgrading my video card, and waiting for the Barcelona (desktop varient) vs. Penryn in Q4.
 
8800GTX will help alot more at this resolution. Any chance to clock your 3800x2 to 2.8?
 
pfunkman said:
I dont get your point? he is not having issues with FPS he is asking for opinions on what he should upgrade. Why would the amount of ram even be a question?
Click to expand...

LoL, my apologiies... I read this waking up out of bed... literally!! haha.
 
X2 is not the best CPU but it still can run the best GPU at 1920x1200 just fine, you don't need to change the whole platform for that.
MrWizard6600 said:
PLEASE when reading ALG7s review the differance in ammount of AF, drivers, and chipsets.
Click to expand...
X2 @ 2.4GHz is comparable to the stock e4300 which didn't lose much performance when compared to X6800 @1920x1200.
 
Your video card is fine. Your cpu is a bit low to use the full power of your video card, since you have a amd board don't change for intel just go for a 6000 X2 or wait for the new amd cpu.
 
sabregen said:
your 7950gx2 will scale with cpu performance. first thing to do is replace the cpu, then go 8800
Click to expand...

Bullshit, at that res of 1920x1200 his rig is *totally gpu limited* right now. The new card is the best choice right now, an X2 at 2400mhz will do 1920x1200 just fine.

I know what I am talking about, the gaming speeds I got with an X2 @2600mhz is the same as with my 3200mhz C2D, considering I play at 1920x1200 with an overclocked 8800GTS. Even the X2 at stock 2ghz gave plenty of speed in games.


If he was playing at 1280x1024 it would be a different story.
 
TheRapture said:
Bullshit, at that res of 1920x1200 his rig is *totally gpu limited* right now. The new card is the best choice right now, an X2 at 2400mhz will do 1920x1200 just fine.

I know what I am talking about, the gaming speeds I got with an X2 @2600mhz is the same as with my 3200mhz C2D, considering I play at 1920x1200 with an overclocked 8800GTS. Even the X2 at stock 2ghz gave plenty of speed in games.


If he was playing at 1280x1024 it would be a different story.
Click to expand...

I agree^^ I am so sick of people and thier CPU bottleneck ideas its stupid at best. Pretty damn hard to make a case of ANY CPU made in the last 2 years being a real bottleneck at that resolution.
 
ATI...err AMD is goingto be releasing a new GPU soon. I'm waiting till Christmas time to build my next sys. The card you have now ain't nothin to laff at. Plus I'd wait foe the 45nm 1,333fsb C2D procs if you go Intel. If budget is no worry then you must do what you feel is right! I'm still runnin and gunnin smooth at 1680X1050 with my puny system. (slim-n-tweaked da f*k out!)
 
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